WTC Final: Kyle Jamieson's Day Out as Kiwis reap rewards for skills and discipline

Coming into the World Test Championship (WTC) Final, there was a lot to ruminate about New Zealand’s bowling line-up. Would the conditions warrant the inclusion of a spinner in Ajaz Patel? If that is the case, who would they drop?

The Kiwis required the inclusion of Colin de Grandhomme to fill an all-rounder’s spot. Tim Southee and Trent Boult were the obvious choices to wield the new ball. This meant a toss-up to choose between Neil Wagner and Kyle Jamieson. But leaving either of them also seemed an inconceivable decision given their Test records.

New Zealand have named their 15-man squad for the #WTC21 Final.https://t.co/XokiAvDB82

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) June 15, 2021

You would imagine an eight-Test old quick would have to make way for a 53-Test veteran. This would have seemed extremely plausible had the former not been Kyle Jamieson. Such has been his impact in a short career.

With his 6’8” tall, lanky physique in addition to his four five-wicket hauls in seven Tests, all of which came in the WTC cycle, Kyle Jamieson seemed undroppable.

“I still don’t think Test cricket has come easy for me,” he told Sky Sports. “In the bowling cartel, the pressure that Tim, Trent and Neil build up, I just sort of ride on the back of that. As a collective, if we put the ball in the right areas, hopefully we can come away with some wickets.”

“I really cant speak highly enough of the environment and the culture the guys have built over a period of time and that has certainly made my transition into international cricket pretty easy,” said Kyle Jamieson.

The third day of the WTC final was a make-or-break day for New Zealand. Under pressure, their bowlers ticked off all the boxes and, most importantly, did the basics right to swing the battle in their favor. Kyle Jamieson, with his tall frame, was relentless in his pursuit of wickets and the unsettling, steepling bounce he generated gave cause for optimism after a gloomy second day.

He began with a clever ploy to set up Virat Kohli. After numerous away swingers, he bowled a ball that nipped back and trapped the Indian skipper plumb in front. Among the pace quartet, Kyle Jamieson found the most movement off the seam (roughly 0.9 degrees). He also bowled 85 centimeters fuller than he did on Day Two.

“It was certainly not my natural length. Naturally, for a taller guy, it’s back of a length,“ he explained at the end of the day. “I felt good yesterday (Day Two) but a little bit tentative with my body so I brought my lengths back. Today (Day Three) I felt a lot more freer so I tried to get my lengths fuller and wobble the ball a little bit and it paid off in the end.”

Kyle Jamieson cleans India up to complete fifer

Kohli’s wicket precipitated a decline which saw India lose their last seven wickets for 71 runs. Rishabh Pant looked circumspect before his patience gave away as he drove loosely at a wide delivery, again from Kyle Jamieson. Despite averaging close to 67 against bowlers bowling over the wicket, Pant’s weaker zone, the off-side, was perfectly exploited.

Jamieson then returned to mop up the tail as Ishant Sharma failed to keep an outswinger down after fishing for the ball in the channel outside off. He followed it up with a toe-crushing, inswinging yorker to Jasprit Bumrah to complete his five-wicket haul. What some feel he lacks in pace, Kyle Jamieson most certainly makes up for with bounce, swing and accuracy. His final figures at the end of the innings read 22-12-31-5.

Kyle Jamieson registered his fifth five-wicket haul in Test match cricket to give New Zealand the edge in their World Test Championship final against India.

— Sky Sports (@SkySports) June 20, 2021

As per CricViz’s win predictor, a draw is an odds-on favorite heading into Day Four and even though the Black Caps seem marginally ahead. With half-centurion Devon Conway falling to Ishant Sharma late in the day, India will feel they can tip the scales in their favor on Day Four, weather permitting.

“Obviously we’d like to get as much of a lead as we can get,” Kyle Jamieson said. “We know in the UK things can happen quite quickly so it was pleasing how we started with the bat and build a foundation on that front. We have seen that it’s not easy batting conditions and with the class of this Indian bowling attack, it’s tough. If we can get ahead, it will be great. If we can get (a lead of) 50,100, 150, that’s great too. As a bowling unit we’ll take whatever we can get.“

In terms of skillset, Kyle Jamieson remains New Zealand's most promising bowler in recent times. The 26-year-old seems to have what it takes to dominate batsmen, even on flat tracks, and engineer significant collapses.

Sterner Tests await Jamieson but for now, he will focus on steering New Zealand to victory this week with the ball and perhaps chip in with the bat as well. Winning the WTC title will be the perfect achievement in his short but excellent career so far.